SAUGERTIES, N.Y. -- A local businessman said he is still pursuing plans to develop a state-of-the-arts indoor sports complex in the town and is currently looking at property adjacent to the Saugerties High School.

"We're taking our time right now," John Barese said Monday of his proposal.

Barese, the owner of Pizza Star and the Starway Café in Saugerties, said he has been in communication with the school board regarding a proposal to build his complex near the high school on Washington Avenue Extension. He said he hopes to sit down with the board to further discuss a letter he received from the school district's attorney.

The letter was originally a confidential one between the district and its attorney, but the Board of Education voted during its June 11 meeting to make the document public. The letter is dated April 29. It was written in response to a letter dated Jan. 25 that Barese sent to school Superintendent Seth Turner.

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In his letter, Barese said he had been in talks to locate his sports center on a parcel of the Horse Shows in the Sun lands. He said the location is adjacent to the high school to the north of the soccer fields.

"I believe this location is an ideal spot for the facility, as one of my main goals has always been for the students of Saugerties High School to be able to utilize the facility during regular school hours, and the use of the facilities to add two additional athletic programs," Barese wrote. He said the facility would, in turn, like to use the district's existing outdoor soccer fields when no school activities are taking place and to use the parking lots at the school to accommodate overflow parking on weekends and evenings.

In exchange, Barese said developers would build a lighted sidewalk to connect the soccer field sidewalk to the sports facility and upgrade the existing soccer fields. He said these improvements would be made at no cost to the district.

"Although there are a number of specific facts that are unknown concerning the proposal, based on the information presented to date, it is unclear whether the public benefits associated with improved district athletic fields and other site improvements would outweigh the private benefits flowing to Mr. Barese by allowing the district facilities to be used for overflow traffic and to conduct camps and clinics," attorney Daniel Petigrow wrote in response. "As a result, in our opinion, there is a likelihood the transaction would be viewed as an unconstitutional gift of public funds under Article 8, Section 1 of the New York state Constitution."

Petigrow added that, among other points, Barese's proposal to use school facilities for summer camps and to use the district's parking lots could conflict with education law if the events are not open to the general public. He also said keeping district facilities open beyond regular school hours may result in overtime for custodial staff.